Forgetting the LORD and Serving Baalim - Judges 3:7

In the book of Judges we learned how, “the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites. And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods” and in chapter three and verse seven of Judges, we learn how, the people of Israel, “forgot the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves” where we read,

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, 

and forgot the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves.

The verse reads, “And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, …” The writer began with the words, “and the children of Israel” which means “and the offspring and progeny belonging to Israel whose name means ‘God prevails’ and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob” “did evil in the sight of the LORD” or “performed and produced bad, malignancy, disagreeableness and wickedness within the vision and presence belonging to Jehovah who is the existing One and is the proper name for the One True God”. The writer shared how the offspring belonging to “Israel” performed bad and wickedness within the presence of Jehovah God. 

The verse goes on to say, “… and forgot the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves.” The writer continued with the words, “and forgot the LORD” which means “and ignored, withered away from and ceased to care for Jehovah who is the existing One and is the proper name of the One True God” “their God” or “their, the children of Israel’s, Supreme Deity”, “and served Baalim” which means “and labored, worshiped and worked for Baalim whose name means ‘lord’ and was the supreme male divinity of the Phoenicians or Canaanites” “and the groves” or “and the sacred trees and poles set up near an altar for idol worship”. The writer shared how the “children of Israel” ignored and ceased to care for Jehovah God and instead worshiped and labored for “Baalim” within the idol worshiping sacred tree altars.

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn how the offspring of “Israel” once again forsook Jehovah God and went after pagan deities. Not only did they ignore and cease to care for God, but they also began to worship and serve “Baalim” at “altars” set within pagan worship locations. God knew this would only serve to harm the people of Israel, and for this reason His wrath was set fast against them. God wants us to worship and serve Him and Him alone through His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of the world and was resurrected from the dead after three days. When we yield to Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and equip us to live according to that truth so we never abandon or forsake Jehovah God for some other deity or within a place of worship that is an abomination to Him. (See Matthew 6:33; John 3:16; Revelation 21:27)

Next time we learn how Jehovah God, “sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

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